


Sing To Me

by bubbleguchi



Category: Daughter of Smoke and Bone - Laini Taylor
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, One Shot, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:34:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26444233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bubbleguchi/pseuds/bubbleguchi
Summary: You’re my wonder,I’m foundWhen you sing to meLove, love, love,I’m your symphony,I’m miles awayBut your voice carriesSing To Me - Mary Lambert-x-A oneshot set before the end of 'Dreams of Gods and Monsters', filling some gaps in Liraz and Ziri's story.
Relationships: Liraz/Ziri (Daughter of Smoke and Bone)
Kudos: 14





	Sing To Me

Ziri’s reunion with Liraz had been...perfect.

Make no mistake, it was awkward and unpredictable and nerve-wracking, but in the best of ways. His time spent with her had been sweet, yet tainted by the Wolf’s body, all of their tenderness overshadowed by that beastly vessel. When Ziri died his second death, he barely found it in himself to mourn the ostensible finality, instead feeling something akin to joy at the prospect of finally being free of this monstrous body. Perhaps he wouldn’t get the chance to fly again, but he would be free. All he had to do was let go.

But he couldn’t.

He didn’t know why, but he felt the dim flame of hope still burning within the depths of his disembodied soul. It didn’t look likely, he knew, that someone would find the Wolf’s body, which was floating lazily in this valley stream, and even less likely that they would find it while Ziri’s soul still clung to it. But he couldn’t do it. Not yet. He resolved to use every ounce of his will to hold on to this body, foul as it was, for as long as he could.

Finally letting go of it was more like a beginning than an end. It was easy, and he wasn’t afraid, - how could he be? - not with the sound of Liraz’s voice to guide him home. Well, into her empty canteen, but that was more of a home to his soul than the Wolf’s body had ever been. Her voice was hesitant, as if she felt foolish to be crouched in a stream attempting to catch a soul with nothing but her voice for bait. Ziri didn’t think she looked foolish; to him, she was salvation.

The next thing he remembered, he was waking up in the Kirin caves, lying on the floor while Karou and Akiva smiled down at him. He’d almost been afraid to sit up, scared that when he looked down at his body he would find himself coated in white fur and wingless, claws marring the tips of his fingers. When he lifted his hands to his face, he saw no claws. His lack of hamsas almost convinced him that he had never been the Wolf at all, as if he was simply waking from a terrible nightmare, his soul having never left his natural skin.

For the first time in his life, he couldn’t wait to get away from Karou. Of course, it wasn’t that she repelled him, but that there was something else pulling him. Ziri wasn’t sure what he wanted more; to see Liraz or to take to the skies on his new but familiar wings. He felt his shoulder muscles twitch at the thought, his wings flitting almost imperceptibly in anticipation. It was then that the scales tipped, and he knew that as desperate as he was to fly, he had to find Liraz and thank her for making it possible.

It was magnetic the way he was drawn to her, finding her with ease. And it was perfect.

-x-

Flying with Liraz was probably the happiest Ziri had ever been. He had been so nervous to see her but the need to thank her outweighed his apprehension, and for this he would be eternally grateful, because it had lead him to the greatest moment of his lives. His feelings had been mixed when they had encountered Zuzanna and Mik on their impossible mount, the obvious joy and amazement tinged with a bitterness at having his time with Liraz cut short. But it was okay. They'd have time.

-x-

During the encounter with the Stelians, Ziri cycled through a multitude of emotions, and every one was erased the second he felt Liraz take his hand in hers. Warmth enveloped him, and he could feel the flush rising up his neck. This was...different. The best kind of different. The kind of different he had waited for his whole life. He found that he could barely focus on what was being said, the heat of Liraz’s hand in his dulling every other sense.

He caught all of the important stuff: the world was ending, except it wasn’t, because they were to become gods and fight the beasts. Easy. He would fight them right now, alone and unarmed, if it meant he could spend the rest of his life with Liraz’s hand in his.

-x-

Liraz withdrew into herself when Akiva left for the Far Isles. Those who didn’t know her wouldn’t have noticed the change, but Ziri did. During Akiva’s goodbyes, she leaned against the cavern wall, face tilted downwards at an angle that made it impossible for Ziri to see her expression from where he stood at the opposite end of the cavern. He scanned the room for a second, and when he looked back she was moving, slipping silently from the room without attracting the attention of anyone else. He wanted so badly to follow her but he hesitated, unsure of whether she would want him to. The memory of her laughter as they flew, bright and true and all for him, was the only push he needed.

He knew where he’d find her. Liraz was sitting cross-legged at the edge of the main bath, hunched, her hand skimming the surface of the water aimlessly. The clip of his hooves on the stone ground announced Ziri’s presence, but she didn’t start, the steady rise and fall of her winged shoulders unaffected. Silently he watched her, waiting for a sign that he could approach. The seconds seemed to stretch, like a held breath between them until Liraz spoke.

“We don’t say goodbye. Its bad luck,” she said without turning. He took this as permission, moving to sit beside her, letting his hooves drop into the water.

“They’ll look after him,” he replied, unsure but hoping to comfort her. He hesitated slightly before adding: “You won’t be alone.”

At this, she finally looked at him. Her eyes were wide and wet, and his heart skipped. She didn’t need to voice her pain; he already knew. Tentatively, he shuffled closer to her, eyes still locked with hers and searching for any sign that he should stop. She just stared back, until they were shoulder to shoulder, faces close enough to breathe in each other’s breath. He could smell her spice scent, and he thought back to the last time they were here, where she lay weak and dying, he in the body of a monster. Where they began.

They’d had beginnings before that, and they’d had them after. This felt like another beginning, to be here as himself, and he unconsciously leaned closer, searching for that secret perfume. It eluded him still, but he had barely any time to lament that before her lips were on his.

The kiss was soft, the faintest pressure and then it was gone. Ziri blinked a few times in shock. Liraz had returned to her original position, face forward, eyes hard over the pale green waters, the faint red of her cheeks the only evidence of what had happened.

Ziri had never kissed anyone before. His heart thumped in his chest, and he could swear that she could hear it threatening to break through his sternum but she didn’t react. She was trying to quell her own thrumming pulse, using all the willpower she had to steady her breathing. It had been her first kiss too, but on top of the thrill of it there was the embarrassment at having done it and the fear that she’d done it wrong.

She hadn’t. Even if she had, Ziri wouldn’t have known. In fact, he would take one wrong kiss from Liraz over a thousand perfect ones from anyone else. To him, any kiss from Liraz would be perfect, and he would very much like more than one. His heart rate picked up again at the thought.

He just couldn’t sit still any longer. His whole body felt electrified, his lips still tingling from the ghost of the kiss, his chest aching with an eagerness for another. Overwhelmed, he slid forward, dropping seamlessly into the bath. This startled Liraz, who shuffled forward, her own feet dropping into the water as she perched on the edge of the bath to gawk at Ziri. His back was to her as he made his way to the centre of the bath. Only once the water reached his neck did he turn to face Liraz, who was still staring at him, her head cocked in question.

“Aren’t you coming in?” he asked innocently. A scowl slowly made its way across her features before she gave a curt nod and slipped in after him.

Her eyes were fixed on him as she waded towards him. He would have shied from the intensity of her gaze if he wasn’t so captured by the sight of her. Breathlessly he watched as she advanced, graceful and intent and _beautiful_. A head shorter than him, the ground retreated beneath her before she reached him so she stopped a meter short, treading water lightly.

He didn’t hesitate to meet her there, anticipation bubbling in the pit of his stomach. The atmosphere had shifted, any hint of Liraz’s earlier grief replaced by this intensity. Ziri felt frozen by it, drunk on it. They were close, so close that their chests almost touched, and Ziri had to crane his neck to keep eye contact with Liraz but he couldn’t look away. When she next spoke, it was barely above a whisper.

“Did you mean it?” she breathed. He knew what she meant.

“You won’t be alone,” he repeated, tone resolute. He needed her to believe it. “ _By the light of the godstars I make this vow_ ,” he whispered, knowing that she would understand.

Her eyes widened as she made the connection. Once upon a time she had sang these words to his soul in hopes that they would guide him home. To salvation. And they had. Her eyes fluttered shut as she closed the distance between them.

If their first kiss had been a spark, this one was seraph fire, hot and consuming. Their bodies were flush against each other, but Ziri lifted Liraz effortlessly in the water in an attempt to somehow become closer.

The kiss ended when Liraz pulled away, gasping. Their chests heaved as they caught their breath. Liraz’s face was growing redder with each passing second, which she tried to hide by pressing it into Ziri’s chest. He laughed softly, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and stroking her braided hair tenderly.

“Will you sing to me again some time?”

Liraz only squeezed him harder in response. He took that as a maybe.


End file.
